Ciaran O’Lionaird (Leevale AC) produced an impressive sprint finish, in a slow and tactical men’s 1500m heat to secure an automatic qualification spot into the semi-final the IAAF World Track and Field Championships in Daegu, South Korea.
The Corkman placed sixth in heat three in a time of 3:40.41.
The opening two laps weren’t particularly quick and O’Lionaird was safely positioned at back of the pack. With 600m to go, the pace quickened considerable and O’Lionaird tried to work his way through the field from the inside but he was boxed in and remained at the back of the field. With 150m to go the burn-up really began and the Corkman managed to move his way through the field to a excellent position to allow him to kick with 60m to go and to move up to sixth position. His Semi-Final takes place on Thursday at 11:55 Irish Time.
Next in action for the Irish is Olive Loughnane in the Woman’s 20k Walk at 1am Irish Time on Wednesday morning. Loughnane produced a sensational performance two years ago at the World Championships to take the silver medal in Berlin.
